Refrigerating apparatus



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Patented Apr. 9, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM E. LEIBINQ,.OF OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TOMAGNUS FRUIT PROD- 'UGTS 00., OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA,'A CORPORATION OF CALIFORNIA.

REFRIGERATING APPARATUS.

Application filed F bruary 20, 1928. Serial No. 255,562.

The present invention relates to an apparatus designed for use as a liquid cooler in mechanical refrigerators and more particularly to the construction of the wall of an expansion unit employed in such systems, whereby there is provided a cooling unit in combination therewith.

Liquid coolers as at present designed, are costly, cumbersome, difficult to repair, and are liable to breakage in the event of inaccurate adjustment or faulty operation of the mechanical elements'of the refrigerating apparatus.

It is to overcome the above disadvantages, among others, that the present unit is designed.

Further objects of the present invention are to provide an expansion unit, so constructed that the walls thereof will yield on the application thereto of undue internal pressure, precluding the bursting of the unit, thus preventing the escape of the refrigerant undcr abnormal conditions. Another object is to provide an expansion unit, wherein the medium to be cooled is in relatively close contact with the refrigerant for a relatively long time, regardless of the speed of travel of the material to be cooled. A further object is to provide a pre-cooling stage for the fluid to be cooled, and which pre-cooling stage reduces the temperature of the fluid to be cooled, so that when the fluidenters the cooling stage, the temperature of the expansion unit is not materially efl'ected thereby, enabling the use of the apparatus for drawing small units of the fluid to be cooled without materially lowering the temperature of the cooling medium.

The invention consists primarily in an expansion unit having a helically corrugated wall embraced by; a shell, the surface of which, with said helix, forms a fluid passage disposed helically the full length of the chamber, and to opposite ends of which helix are connected the inlet and outlet pipes for conducting the fluid to be cooled, the shell being secured to the chamber wall in such manner that the securing joint is adaptable for easy rupturing on a lineal expansion of the chamber therein, the chamber being supplied in the usual manner with the refrigerant. An expansion unit may be positioned or located within a fluid body which surrounds the same, and there may be provided a pre-cooling coil or pipe section extending through the fluid body in advance of the inlet point of the helical channel.

With the above mentioned and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel construction and combination of parts hereinafter described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the claims hereto appended; it being understood that various changes in the form, proportion, size and minor details of construction within the scope of the claims may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawings, wherein like characters of reference designate corresponding parts- Fig. 1 is a view in front elevation of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal, vertical sectional view of my present invention mounted within a fluid containing chamber and connected with a pre-cooling coil.

Referring to the drawings, wherein like characters of reference designate corresponding parts,l indicates a suitable tank, illustrated with an open top 2 and containing a body of fluid 3, such as water. At one end the tank is provided with a cylindrical opening 4, andoutwardly from the interior of said tank is extended, through said opening 4, the head of an expansion unit. The expansion unit is provided with a supporting ring 5, mounting a gasket 6, which lies against the tank wall surrounding the opening 4. The gasket is maintained in tight contact with the wall surrounding the opening by screws 7 passing through the retaining ring 8, lying exteriorly of the outer sur face of the tank wall surrounding the openmg 4.,

The expansion unit in the form illustrated consists of an elongated metallic cylinder 9, having a contracted throat 10, surrounded by a mouth ring 11 secured thereto in any suitable manner. The throat is' adapted to be closed by a mouth plate 12, detachably secured to the ring 11 by screws 13.

Liquid refrigerant, such as SO from a conventional compressor is delivered into the compression chamber through the inlet 14, its flow being controlled by the needle valve 15 operated by the float 16, designed to maintain the level of the refrigerant approxsion chamber.

length of the cylinder 9.

Gas from the refrigerant discharges from the expansion chamber under low pressure through the outlet 17. The wall of the cylinder 9 is helically corrugated at 18 for approximately its full length, and tightly embracing the cylinder for the length of said helix is a shell or tube 19. The inner surface of the shell is in contact with the periphery of the cylinder between said corrugations, and forms therewith a continuous channel 20 extending approximately the full The ends of the channel 20 are closed by'the respective rings 21 and 22 of solder or other medium, for uniting the cylinder to the ends of the shell; The solder ring 22 is preferably constructed to ield or break on an internal expansion a ove a predetermined pressure tak ing place within the channel 20, enabling the lineal expansion of the cylinder under freezing conditions in channel 20.

Illustrated as positioned within the botdrawal of small quantities of water from the system; this being accomplished by the pre-cooling coil submerged within the fluid within the tank 1, and connected with the channel 20, which, as illustrated, is of considerable length and capacity.

In this construction, the continuous drawing of water raises the temperature of chamber 9, and after a relatively small quantity is drawn, the increased temperature immediately starts the compressor of the system and makes its maximum capacity immediately available.

I claim 1. An expansionnnit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising a pair of tubular members, the inner member closed at its ends forming a refrigerating chamber, said members arranged with their walls concentrically disposed with portions of adjacent faces directly contacting, one of said walls being helically corrugated to afford a fluid channel surrounding the chamber, fluid inlet and outlet connections for said channel, means tom of the tank 1, is a section 23 of pipe, ,for admitting a refrigerant into said chamsubmerged within the fluid 3, and connected at one end with the inlet 24 of the channel 20. An outlet pipe 25 extends from the other end of the channel 20 and is illustrated as passing through the wall of the tank 1.

In the present construction, the outer shell is in excellent thermal contact with both the fluid 3 and tank 1, and the liquid refrigerant in the cylinder, the result of which tends to maintain the pum or compressor in longer periods of operation, and to further make it less susceptible to operation on minor changes of temperature of the liquid to be cooled.

With this present construction, should the system break down or become inoperative, with its resultant freezing of the water in the corrugations in the expansion unit, the freezing will cause an elongation or an lineal extension of the corrugations of the expansion unit, break the solder ring 22, and slightl separate the expansion unit from the cy inder, this taking place without rupturing the wall of the expansion unit, it being made possible by the helical corrugation.

In this present construction it will be observed that considerable water to be cooled is held in the section 23 of pipe submerged within the fluid 3, and also a considerable quantity of Water is held in the continuous channel 20 formed in the wall of the cylinder 9.

Thus in thedrawing of a single glass of liquid or other small quantity of water, the

temperature of the refrigerant in the interior of the expansion unit is not materially changed, consequently the compressor of the system is not caused to operate on the withber and for releasing its gases therefrom, and means for uniting the walls near their ends. v

2. An expansion unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising a pair of tubular members, the inner member closed at its ends forming a refrigerating chamber, said members arranged with their walls concentrically disposed with portions of adjacent faces directly contacting, one of said walls being helically corrugated to afford a fluid channel surrounding the chamber, fluid inlet and outlet connections for said channel. means for admitting a refrigerant into said chamber and for releasing its gases therefrom, and means for uniting the Walls forming said tubular members at their opposite ends and for closing the opposite ends of said channel.

3. An expansion unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising a pair of tubular members, the inner member closed at its ends forming a refrigerating chamber, said members arranged with their walls concentrically disposed with portions of adjacent faces contacting, one of said walls being helically corrugated to afford a fluid channel surrounding the chamber, fluid inlet and outlet connections for said channel, means for admitting a refrigerant into said chamber and for releasing its gases therefrom, means for uniting the tubular member forming walls near their ends, a fluid containing tank within which said unit is positioned submerged within the fluid, and a pipe within the tank connected with the channel inlet.

4. An expansion unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising a pair of tubular members, the inner member closed at its ends forming a refrigerating chamber, said surrounding the chamber, fluid inlet and outlet connections for said channel, means for admitting a refrigerant into said'cham- .ber and for releasing gases therefrom, and means for closing the opposite ends of said channel and circumferentially uniting said walls at their opposite ends.

An expansion unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising a pair of tubular members, the inner member closed at its ends forming a refrigerating chamber, said members arranged with their walls concentrically disposed with portions of adjacent faces contacting, one of said walls being helically corrugated to afford a fluid channel surrounding the chamber, fluid inlet and outlet connections for said channel, means for admitting a refrigerant into said chamber and for releasing its gases therefrom, independent means lylng between the opposite ends ef said tubular members for closing the opposite ends of said channel and for circumferentially uniting said walls, one of said members adapted to break on a lineal expansion of the chamber.

6. An expansion unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising a chamber provided with an inlet and an outlet for refrigerant and formed peripherally with a helical corrugation, a shellctightly embracing the periphery of the chamber and forming a channel of said corrugation, means for closing the ends of said channel, and fluid inlet and outlet connections at the ends of said channel.

7. An expansion unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising a chamber for the refrigerating medium and provided with valve controlled inlet and a gaseous outlet, the wall of said chamber being helically corrugated forming a fluid conducting channel, a shell embracing said chamber wall, said shell overlying the corrugated helix of said chamber in contact therewith, means for circumferentially sealing the ends of the shell to said chamber wall, a tank containing a fluid in which said chamber is submerged, a pre-cooling pipe section within said' tank fluid and connected at its discharge end with the inlet end of said channel, and a pipe extending from the outlet end of said channel.

8. An expansion unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising a pair of tubular members, the inner member closed at its ends forming a refrigerating chamber, said members arranged with their walls concentrically disposed with portions of adjacent faces contacting, the inner of said walls beinghelically corrugated to afford a fluid channel surrounding the chamber, fluid inlet and outlet connections for said channel, means for admitting a refrigerant into said chamber and for releasing its gases therefrom, and means for uniting the walls near their ends.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

WILLIAM E. LEIBING. 

